A coalition running for election says it will block development of data centers, following revelations that there have been four hyperscale proposals.
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The Village Council election Aug. 18 could determine whether Indiantown — the only municipality on the Treasure Coast outspokenly supporting data centers — will remain a welcoming environment for developers hoping to build the high-tech operations.
Over the past five years, Indiantown has seen four hyperscale data-center proposals that could financially and environmentally transform the municipality, which has among the highest poverty rates in Florida. The election could, arguably, be a referendum on data-center development if a coalition of opponents succeeds in unseating incumbents.
Anthony Dowling and Janet Hernandez, both former village council members, have supported implementing a moratorium on data-center development. They are challenging incumbents Angelina Perez and Karen Onsager, respectively.
"I oppose hyperscale data-center development in Indiantown," Dowling said in a statement. "This council has very clearly signaled an appetite for data center development, and I believe developers have taken notice."
"Once large-scale development occurs, some impacts may be difficult or impossible to reverse," Hernandez said in a statement.
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Indiantown has seen such a disproportionate number of data center pitches — Silver Fox 606, Project Growler and two other recently resurfaced proposals among them — that officials have lost count, and they disagree on semantics. Depending on whom you ask, the number of data centers proposed in Indiantown ranges from zero to four.
"There are no hyperscale date-center proposals before the Village Council," Perez said in a statement.
"There was one proposal earlier this year, and it was withdrawn," said Mayor Carmine Dipaolo, who also is up for reelection. "There is currently no data center proposal before me or the Village Council for review."
Data-center developers eye Indiantown
Dipaolo and Village Manager Taryn Kryzda spoke exclusively to TCPalm in July about their optimism for data-center development in Indiantown. The facilities would result in hefty tax revenue for the village and would provide high-paying job opportunities, they said.
Looking at the county property appraiser's website, Kryzda pointed out the sites of Silver Fox 606 and Project Growler, both of which are situated on industrial land.
"You hear all this negativity about data centers," Dipaolo said. "Indiantown has always been an industrial town."
There were no other data-center proposals besides those two, Kryzda said, despite speculation about eventual development on recently annexed Tesoro Groves property owned by Florida Power & Light Co.
"The rumor is that the FPL property was going to be considered," she said. "But we've not (received anything) for that."
Beskar data center wanted to be in Indiantown
Later in the same interview, however, Kryzda acknowledged that one landowner, at one point, considered building a data center that would be annexed into the village. She had previously denied there was ever documentation of it.
Beskar Investment LLC was planning a $2 billion hyperscale data center, among other potential industrial uses, according to documents obtained by TCPalm.
Construction on the Beskar data center was to begin construction this year, with the facility operational by 2029, according to a consultant's economic-impact analysis. It would have had 185 permanent employees, mostly high-paid engineers, according to the analysis. It projected a local economic impact of nearly $770 million.
But Beskar withdrew its proposal for "no reason," Kryzda said in a July 10 statement to TCPalm. "They never submitted any documentation for a data center."
Incentives offered to Project Bumblebee data center
Indiantown's administration had tried to reel in a data center as far back as 2021, Kloee Ciuperger, CEO of the Economic Council of Indiantown, announced during the Aug. 13 Village Council meeting.
She shared with TCPalm a letter of support for the project that outlined potential economic incentives, such as sales-tax exemptions, property-tax exemptions and a job-creation grant.
The job-creation grant ranged from $2,000-$5,000 for each added job; property-tax exemptions ranged from 10-20 years.
"The industry is poised to grow leaps and bounds in the village of Indiantown," wrote Althea Jefferson, the former village economic-development director. "We are hopeful you will consider Indiantown as your future home."
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The Village Council — including candidates Dowling and Hernandez — "supported this data center at the time," Ciuperger said in a statement to TCPalm. "This data center project was welcomed by the village."
But everyone doesn't see it that way.
"I never participated in any conversation about this project or any other data center project during my time on the council," Dowling said. "Any attempt to suggest otherwise is wholly disingenuous."
Jack Randall is TCPalm’s economy and real estate reporter. You can reach him at [email protected].